Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Animals: Northern Ireland

Lord Dodds of Duncairn: To ask His Majesty's Government why it is not possible to ban the export of live animals from Northern Ireland.

Lord Benyon: The Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill will not apply in Northern Ireland, to ensure that farmers in Northern Ireland have unfettered access to the UK and Republic of Ireland markets. Under the Windsor Framework, Northern Ireland will continue to follow EU legislation on animal welfare in transport.

Fisheries

Lord Hay of Ballyore: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking toensure that theUKis actively enforcing itsfishingrights.

Lord Benyon: As an independent coastal state, the UK has full responsibility over how it ensures compliance in its fisheries. All fishing vessels in UK waters are required to fish in accordance with UK laws and the conditions of their licences. As control and enforcement is a devolved matter, Defra, the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive work together to share information and ensure a coordinated approach to monitoring, compliance and enforcement across UK waters.

Department of Health and Social Care

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Health Services

Baroness Scott of Needham Market: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to (1) ensure people with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) have access to specialist ME/chronic fatigue syndrome services, and (2) increase funding available forsuch services.

Baroness Scott of Needham Market: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the adequacy of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome services commissioned by (1) Norfolk and Waveney, and (2) Suffolk and North East Essex, Integrated Care Board.

Lord Markham: Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning specialist myalgic encephalomyelitis / chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) services that meet the needs of their population subject to local prioritisation and funding. The process of commissioning services should take into account best practice guidance such as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance on ME/CFS diagnosis and management, published in October 2021. A copy of the guidance is attached.The Government has been consulting on ‘My Full Reality’, the cross-Government interim delivery plan on ME/CFS, which seeks to improve the experiences and outcomes of people living with this condition. The plan contains a series of actions to improve access to specialist ME/CFS services. The final plan will be published in due course.The Government has made no assessment of the ME/CFS services commissioned by Norfolk and Waveney, and Suffolk and North East Essex ICBs.Attachment (pdf, 539.7KB)

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

Nuclear Fuels

Lord West of Spithead: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether there issufficient Western uranium conversion capacity and uranium enrichment capacity to replace that provided by Russian state-owned entities.

Lord Callanan: The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has made it more important than ever to reduce international dependencies on Russian energy supplies, which is why through the Sapporo Agreement and the Atlantic Declaration, the Government has committed to the development of shared, resilient supply chains to support global divestment from Russian nuclear fuel supply. The UK’s uranium enrichment capabilities are amongst the best in the world, and Government has announced its commitment to growing these by developing a High Assay Low Enriched Uranium capability in the UK. The Government has also committed £13m, match-funded by Westinghouse, to fund preparatory work to bring Uranium Conversion capability back to the UK’s Springfields site, with the potential to deliver 7,500 tonnes of uranium conversion capability, for both reprocessed uranium and naturally enriched uranium, by the end of the decade. This would give a vital alternative capacity to Russia. While fuel and uranium procurement is ultimately a commercial matter for reactor operators, the government continues to work closely with international fuel suppliers and our allies to mitigate and respond to any supply chain risks.

Energy: Meters

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to mitigate financial burdens to households which arise from malfunctioning smart meters leading to an inaccurate energy bill.

Lord Callanan: Energy suppliers are obligated under licence conditions to ensure their customers’ smart meters continue to function. Ofgem is responsible for regulating energy suppliers against their obligations. The Department is actively working with suppliers to increase the number operating in smart mode. Around 92% of smart meters are operating as they should. Smart meters not operating in smart mode will continue to record consumption accurately like a traditional meter, with meter readings taken manually to ensure billing on the basis of actual energy use. Government encourages any consumer experiencing a loss of smart services to speak to their supplier for further advice and remedy.

Treasury

Economic Situation

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government whatsteps they are taking to sustain and increase economic confidence among consumers.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: Consumer and business confidence is intrinsically linked to the broader economic outlook. To sustain consumer confidence, consumers need to feel assured that their government is taking the long-term decisions necessary to strengthen the economy and build a brighter future.Promoting macroeconomic stability is central to the Government’s economic priorities. In January 2023 the Prime Minister set out three economic priorities: to halve inflation, grow the economy and reduce debt. Progress is being made against all three of these:Inflation is less than half its peak.Economic growth has been resilient, and the economy is now expected to grow in every year of the forecast period, as assessed by the OBR in their recent forecast.Debt is forecast to fall as a proportion of GDP over the medium term, with greater headroom than at Spring Budget 2023.Consumers are directly benefitting from the responsible approach taken to prioritising economic stability and making work pay. The cut in National Insurance contributions means the average worker on £35,400 will receive a tax cut in 2024-25 of over £450. From 1 April 2024, the National Living Wage (NLW) will increase by 9.8% to £11.44, representing an increase of over £1,800 to the annual earnings of a full-time worker on the NLW.

Lloyds Bank: Redundancy

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government, further to recent reports concerning job cuts at Lloyd's Bank, what steps they are taking to address challenges in the financial sector and mitigate the impact on employees.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: The government is committed to ensuring the continued global success of the financial services sector. At the Autumn Statement, the government set out further progress in delivering on the Edinburgh and Mansion House reforms, taking ambitious steps to increase the flow of capital going to our more promising growth companies whilst further enhancing the financial services regulatory environment. Decisions on how firms like Lloyds Banking Group manage their workforce is a commercial consideration for the firms themselves. However, this government is committed to creating the right environment for businesses to invest, expand, and increase the number of high-quality jobs for people and this remains at the centre of the government’s economic policy. For example, at the Autumn Statement the government announced that full expensing for qualifying business investments would be made permanent, giving the UK one of the most generous capital allowances regimes in the OECD on a net present value basis.

Ministry of Justice

Prisoners: Reviews

Lord Blunkett: To ask His Majesty's Government what is the expected timetable for the report by the Chief Inspector of Probation on the independent thematic inspection on the proportionality of recall to prison by IPP prisoners alleged to have breached their licence conditions, mentioned in a letter from the thenLord Chancellor to the Chair of the House of Commons Justice Committee on 1 February.

Lord Bellamy: His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation are due to publish their report on the thematic inspection of IPP recall decisions before the end of the year.